Jetalliance Racing has made the perfect start to the new
FIA GT Championship season after Karl Wendlinger and Ryan Sharp secured victory in the Tourist Trophy event at
Silverstone.
The Aston Martin pair went into the weekend as one of the pre-race favourites and led in the early stages of a damp race before a spin for Wendlinger dropped the former
F1 racer back to fifth place.
He battled to stay in contention before Sharp took over from the final half an hour, with the Scot moving up to second place before a Safety Car allowed him to close onto the rear of race leader Phillip Peter. It didn't take long for Sharp to make his move for the lead, going on to secure victory and making him the first British driver since Andy Rouse back in 1988 to lift the Tourist Trophy aloft.
“It's a fantastic win,” he said. “We were here last year but unfortunately didn't make it onto the podium. As we're starting the championship off here this year, it was important to get some points. It was just really important to cross the line first.
“It's great to be on the Tourist Trophy, to know that your name will be on there forever, next to some other great names. It's fantastic! I can't wait until next week to go down and have a look at it.”
Capping a fine weekend for the team, Jetalliance owner Lukas Lichtner-Hoyer and team-mate Alex Muller secured sixth in the sister car.
“A win for our team in the first race, and my best FIA GT finish so far with P6 on top of that,” he said. “This says it all, really, about my present emotions. My congratulations to everyone!”
![Wendlinger/Sharp - Jetalliance Racing Aston Martin DBR9 [Pic credit: FIA GT/DPPI]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/430686.jpg)
